Chapter 96 Reunion
"Xiao Bao!"
Fan Xiaoxiao raised her hand with some effort, and hearing the child crying on the other side, her eyes inexplicably reddened. Then, another person emerged from the boat awning; it was Fan Shi.
"It's Ah Mei! It really is Ah Mei!!"
Then, Aunt Wang came out too. They stood there waving their arms frantically, calling out to her.
"You two know each other?" Xiaoyu frowned when she saw the action on the other side. The two seemed to be quite familiar with each other.
"Yes, they are my family." Fan Xiaoxiao felt like crying, but also like laughing.
"Master Lu, please come closer."
The boat turned around, and Master Lu steadily rowed it towards the other side, and soon the two boats were side by side.
Fan Xiaoxiao wanted to get up, but she forgot that she was already unable to move. Even the slightest movement made her shoulder feel as if it were about to split open.
Meanwhile, the Fan family and others wanted to come and see her, but unfortunately, Master Lu's boat was too small to accommodate so many people. After some discussion, it turned out that only the Fan family could bring Xiao Bao, whose eyes were swollen from crying, to find her.
After boarding the boat, Madam Fan greeted Madam Ye and Master Lu. After walking around the baskets in the middle, she finally saw Fan Xiaoxiao sitting against one of the baskets.
If they had only seen most of Fan Xiaoxiao's body intact before, now that they saw her injuries, they were stunned.
Xiao Bao was the first to react. He let go of Fan Shi's hand and lay down next to Fan Xiaoxiao, his eyes, swollen from crying and looking at his aunt with teary eyes.
"Auntie! You're hurt! You're covered in blood. Waaaaah, Xiao Bao is crying out in pain, the pain is excruciating, waaaaah..."
Xiao Bao was crying so hard he could barely breathe. He carefully held Fan Xiaoxiao's hand and gently blew on the bandage, while large tears continued to fall from his eyes.
“Xiao Bao…” Fan Xiaoxiao looked at the child and felt a lump in her throat.
"You guys chat here, I'll go help Grandpa row the boat." Xiaoyu was a little uncomfortable with the scene in front of her. She turned her head away and bent over to go to the back.
As she passed by the Fan family's land, she heard this woman speaking.
"Thanks……"
Xiaoyu glanced back at her, said nothing, and continued walking towards the stern. Once Xiaoyu left, only Fan Xiaoxiao and the other two remained in the middle.
Madam Fan sat down in the empty seat, her head bowed, saying nothing. But when she saw Fan Xiaoxiao's injuries, her eyes reddened again and again.
"Sister..." Fan Xiaoxiao tried to say something cautiously, but Madam Fan didn't seem to intend to pay attention to her. She simply took out a handkerchief from her bosom, dipped it in the clear river water, and carefully wiped the dirt off Fan Xiaoxiao's face.
The atmosphere became somewhat awkward, and even Xiao Bao's crying gradually turned into sobs.
Fan Xiaoxiao instinctively wanted to raise her hand to scratch her face, but as soon as she tugged at her hand, she gasped in pain.
Upon hearing her voice, Madam Fan paused in wiping her face, her movements becoming even gentler.
"Sister... are you angry?" Fan Xiaoxiao asked cautiously.
Sure enough, when she asked that question, Madam Fan's hand paused slightly again.
She was indeed angry. Fan Xiaoxiao sighed inwardly and opened her mouth to explain, "Sister, the situation was urgent...you and Uncle were both injured...that's why I...and don't be fooled by my injuries, it was all an accident. I'll be fine soon! Don't worry! Oh! By the way, how is Uncle...and you, does your face still hurt?"
With a "smack," Madam Fan threw the handkerchief in her hand aside, startling Fan Xiaoxiao. She knew her elder sister was always gentle and kind; in her memory, she had never spoken harshly to her. Now, with that slam of the handkerchief, Fan Xiaoxiao felt her liver tremble...
"Sister...I..."
Did I ask you those questions?
"Huh?" Fan Xiaoxiao didn't quite understand what Fan Shi meant.
“From the moment you opened your mouth until now, you've either been explaining or asking us questions. What have you done?”
Fan Xiaoxiao was stunned: "Me? I... what happened to me?"
"Are you in pain! Were you scared yesterday! What happened to you over there! Why didn't you mention any of this! I'm your older sister! You took my place! Do you expect me to take your place?! Aren't you made of flesh and blood?! Don't you feel pain?! I just want you and Xiaobao to live well!"
Ms. Fan rarely got so emotional; as soon as she finished speaking, tears streamed down her face.
“I’m so useless, little sister. You’re not as smart as me, and you’re not as capable as Cheng. But I want to protect you and Xiao Bao…”
Hearing Fan's seemingly cathartic sobs, Fan Xiaoxiao felt as if a needle had pierced her heart. Her eyes also burned intensely. Before, she was alone; no one had ever said these things to her. In that instant, all the fear and anxiety she had felt the previous night turned into tears, and Fan Xiaoxiao finally cried out loud.
"It hurts...it hurts...sister, so many people have died over there, I'm scared, I'm afraid I'll never see you again."
Fan hugged her with some heartache, and the three of them burst into tears.
Sitting at the stern, Lady Ye rubbed her temples, got up, and walked to another boat.
Aunt Wang was sitting in the awning boat, wiping away tears. When she saw Madam Ye suddenly walk in, she was slightly taken aback, and then frowned deeply: "Madam Ye, you... how come you are covered in blood too! Please sit down, let me wipe you off."
Before she could even utter a word of refusal, Lady Ye felt a slight chill on her hand, followed by the person opposite her gently wiping her hand, and then her face. She frowned slightly, a little uncomfortable, but then withdrew her hand and said, "No need."
Seeing her resolute expression, Aunt Wang didn't press the matter further. Then, a somewhat weak voice rang out from the stern of the boat.
"Li Niang, don't force them. Let's go to the back and switch Young Master Miao with them. The two of them need to talk, and we can prepare some food for everyone." The voice seemed to belong to the man called Uncle Wang.
The boat rocked slightly, and Uncle Wang and his companion got up and went to the back to move the small seedlings that were rowing at the back to the front.
"My lady." Xiao Miao bowed and walked to Ye Niangzi's side. Upon seeing the bloodstains on her body, her brows furrowed immediately. "We don't have much medicine left..."
Lady Ye raised her hand slightly, and Xiao Miao wisely shut her mouth, turned around and walked to the corner to get a jar of wine and handed it to Lady Ye.
"How's the news over there?" Madam Ye took the wine, took a sip, and frowned slightly at the slightly sour taste.
"We've found it. Let's hurry on our way. We'll be there in three days."
Lady Ye nodded slightly, took another sip of wine, and seeing that she seemed to have no further instructions, Xiao Miao bowed and prepared to leave. Just then, Lady Ye seemed to tilt her head towards him, and asked in a tone that revealed little emotion, "By the way, how did you end up with them?"
(End of this chapter)
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